Exhibitions provide the perfect arena for attendees to network with specialists, debate burning issues and generate business leads..
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div>Exhibitions provide the perfect arena for attendees to network with specialists, debate burning issues and generate business leads.
When it comes to the genres of industry events, the exhibition often rests at the top.
This autumn is set to witness the ‘Exhibition Trio’ that every mortgage intermediary should have diarised.
This trio includes: the longstanding Mortgage Business Expo (MBE), the firecracker that is the Financial Professional Show (FP Show) and the expanding Financial Services Expo (FSE).
Read on to find out where you have to be and what you can expect from the 2014 expo season.
The Mortgage Business Expo (MBE) - Wednesday 8th October, The Barbican
This expo has been running for 13 years, hosted at a range of venues including Olympia, Excel and, for 2014, the Barbican.
As well as the London event, MBE’s parent firm, Clarion Events, once owned MBE Manchester. However, last year this show was cancelled abruptly just after Clarion’s then-Show Director, James Prosser, left his role to later head up rival company, Front Events.
Usually held over days, the MBE reached a peak of 1400 visitors in 2010. This year is set to see a consolidation of the Expo into one day at its new East London venue.
The 2014 MBE exhibitor list features high street heavyweights such as Nationwide and Woolwich, as well as challengers like Aldermore Bank, and industry associations such as the Institute of Financial Services (IFS).
Commenting on the show ahead, Alex Hammond of MBE sponsor Kensington Mortgages said: “Kensington is really looking forward to this year’s Mortgage Business Expo. These are exciting times for our business as we look to develop our proposition and cement our status as the number one specialist lender.”
Kensington preps brokers to keep their eyes peeled for an announcement. “We are looking forward to catching up with some of our key brokers and distributors, meeting new intermediaries with who we can work in the future – and perhaps even launching something new and exciting.”
Click here to register to attend.
The Finance Professional Show (FP Show) - Wednesday 5th of November, Olympia Central
Last year, the FP Show trail-blazed its way onto the expo scene, bringing with it several big industry announcements including the return of RBS to specialist commercial finance and its re-joining of the National Association of Commercial Finance Brokers (NACFB)
Dubbed as “a roaring success” (SPF Short Term Finance), the debut 2013 show attracted over 1400 finance professionals and 88 exhibitors. The show also hosted the AGM for the NACFB.
The Show’s conference programme covered a range of industry debates and provided a stage for the launch of Dragonfly Property Finance’s commercial three-year loan and InterBay Commercial’s triple broker incentive.
Back for round two this November and with almost all exhibitor stands sold out already, the FP Show - organised by the team behind the Commercial Finance Expo held annually in Birmingham - is shaping up to exceed expectations once again.
Commenting on last year’s event, Ashley Ilsen, New Business Executive at Regentsmead said: “The true test of how successful the inaugural FP show was last year was the quality of discussions had on the day. We were able to meet some great new introducers, discuss and sign up some outstanding projects on the day and even have a little time to catch up with our fellow lenders.
“By the end of last year’s show, we were ready to sign up for 2014 immediately and have already begun planning for another busy exhibition this November. Full credit to Ruth, Rachel and everyone else involved in the FP show, as it really is one of the highlights of the year in the Regentsmead calendar.”
Also commenting on 2013’s success, Adam Tyler, Chief Executive of the NACFB, said: “It was great to see a busy show with business being done between the broking community and the lenders present on the day. There was a really great atmosphere in the room and the feedback we received from our members was fantastic. We are already planning on holding our AGM at the show again in 2014.”
Like with any expo, it gives the opportunity to catch up with old friends and possibly renew partnerships. Tomer Aboody, Director at short-term lender MTF explains: “Events such as this provide us with the opportunity to catch up with the introducer community, to get their feedback, and to continue to establish our brand as a leading bridging finance company.
“We are particularly looking forward to the Finance Professional Show this year where we will have a significant presence.”
Mark Posniak, Head of Sales and Marketing at Dragonfly Property Finance, said that compared to the other two shows available, the FP Show gave the best range of professionals to speak to, and by having all attendees present on one day rather than two, the occasion made for a much better scenario.
“The FP Show is a very well-run show, it has a great audience and with all the other lenders going there, it is the expo to attend.”
Click here to register to attend.
The Financial Services Expo (FSE) - 24th-25th September 2014, Old Billingsgate
Owned by Front Events, this year’s FSE London is again spread across two days.
In April, Front Events hosted the first expo based in Northern England in the last two years. Additionally, earlier this year the events group acquired the Mortgage and Finance Expo in Scotland with a view to rebrand it as FSE Scotland.
The inaugural FSE event was structured across seven exhibitor zones organised by sector. This included: mortgages, commercial lending, protection, alternative lending, legal & surveying, distributions and technology.
Jeff Knight, Director of Propositions at Castle Trust, said: “Castle Trust exhibited at the inaugural FSE last year with huge success, so deciding to attend this year’s event was a very easy decision.
“Having the ability to talk to hundreds of advisers in one day is a crucial part of our sales and marketing plan and I believe that events like FSE are vital for Castle Trust and the industry.
“I am very much looking forward to being at the event, which I expect to be bigger and better than last year.”
Click here to register.
With all these events being significant to the industry, it is common for firms to visit more than one.
Rob Jupp, CEO at Brightstar Financial, commented: “Brightstar have selected FSE and FP Show this year as we think they are the two stand-out events.
“Both events had a fantastic 2013 launch and were well-attended, which gives businesses like mine the opportunity to speak to new clients as well as extend our friendships with existing clients.”
Other 2014 events to note include:
- Resi 2014, more information here
- MIPIM UK, more information here
- BCSC Retail Property Event, more information here
- LPP- Residential Forum, more information here
- Property Investor Show, more information here
Goodies and freebies aside, exhibitions celebrate the power of face-to-face interaction. Masthaven illustrated this by landing £5 million in enquiries from visiting brokers at June’s NACFB Expo.
Keep an eye on the B&C Calendar on our homepage for other essential events for the finance professional.
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